scholarly journals Functional Characterization of the N-Acetylmuramyl-l-Alanine Amidase, Ami1, from Mycobacterium abscessus

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 2410
Author(s):  
Tanja Küssau ◽  
Niël Van Wyk ◽  
Matt D. Johansen ◽  
Husam M. A. B. Alsarraf ◽  
Aymeric Neyret ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Muramyl Dipeptide ◽  
Dynamic Structure ◽  
Hydrolytic Activity ◽  
Docking Studies ◽  
Mycobacterium Abscessus ◽  
In Silico Docking

Peptidoglycan (PG) is made of a polymer of disaccharides organized as a three-dimensional mesh-like network connected together by peptidic cross-links. PG is a dynamic structure that is essential for resistance to environmental stressors. Remodeling of PG occurs throughout the bacterial life cycle, particularly during bacterial division and separation into daughter cells. Numerous autolysins with various substrate specificities participate in PG remodeling. Expression of these enzymes must be tightly regulated, as an excess of hydrolytic activity can be detrimental for the bacteria. In non-tuberculous mycobacteria such as Mycobacterium abscessus, the function of PG-modifying enzymes has been poorly investigated. In this study, we characterized the function of the PG amidase, Ami1 from M. abscessus. An ami1 deletion mutant was generated and the phenotypes of the mutant were evaluated with respect to susceptibility to antibiotics and virulence in human macrophages and zebrafish. The capacity of purified Ami1 to hydrolyze muramyl-dipeptide was demonstrated in vitro. In addition, the screening of a 9200 compounds library led to the selection of three compounds inhibiting Ami1 in vitro. We also report the structural characterization of Ami1 which, combined with in silico docking studies, allows us to propose a mode of action for these inhibitors.

scholarly journals Functional Characterization of Three-Dimensional Cortical Cultures for In Vitro Modeling of Brain Networks

iScience ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 101434
Author(s):  
Yu-Ting L. Dingle ◽  
Volha Liaudanskaya ◽  
Liam T. Finnegan ◽  
Kyler C. Berlind ◽  
Craig Mizzoni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Brain Networks ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
In Vitro Modeling ◽  
Cortical Cultures

Functional Characterization of Three-Dimensional Cortical Cultures for in vitro Modeling of Brain Networks

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu-Ting Dingle ◽  
Volha Liaudanskaya ◽  
Liam Finnegan ◽  
Kyler Berlind ◽  
Craig Mizzoni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Brain Networks ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Cortical Cultures

Structural and functional characterization of an arylamineN-acetyltransferase from the pathogenMycobacterium abscessus: differences from other mycobacterial isoforms and implications for selective inhibition

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 3066-3079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angélique Cocaign ◽  
Xavier Kubiak ◽  
Ximing Xu ◽  
Guillaume Garnier ◽  
Inès Li de la Sierra-Gallay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Selective Inhibition ◽  
Docking Studies ◽  
Chemotherapeutic Agents ◽  
Mycobacterium Abscessus ◽  
Inhibitor Binding ◽  
Functional Studies ◽  
Aromatic Substrates ◽  
Substrate Inhibitor

Mycobacterium abscessusis the most pathogenic rapid-growing mycobacterium and is one of the most resistant organisms to chemotherapeutic agents. However, structural and functional studies ofM. abscessusproteins that could modify/inactivate antibiotics remain nonexistent. Here, the structural and functional characterization of an arylamineN-acetyltransferase (NAT) fromM. abscessus[(MYCAB)NAT1] are reported. This novel prokaryotic NAT displays significantN-acetyltransferase activity towards aromatic substrates, including antibiotics such as isoniazid andp-aminosalicylate. The enzyme is endogenously expressed and functional in both the rough and smoothM. abscessusmorphotypes. The crystal structure of (MYCAB)NAT1 at 1.8 Å resolution reveals that it is more closely related toNocardia farcinicaNAT than to mycobacterial isoforms. In particular, structural and physicochemical differences from other mycobacterial NATs were found in the active site. Peculiarities of (MYCAB)NAT1 were further supported by kinetic and docking studies showing that the enzyme was poorly inhibited by the piperidinol inhibitor of mycobacterial NATs. This study describes the first structure of an antibiotic-modifying enzyme fromM. abscessusand provides bases to better understand the substrate/inhibitor-binding specificities among mycobacterial NATs and to identify/optimize specific inhibitors. These data should also contribute to the understanding of the mechanisms that are responsible for the pathogenicity and extensive chemotherapeutic resistance ofM. abscessus.

Novel Spiro/non-Spiro Pyranopyrazoles: Eco-Friendly Synthesis, In-vitro Anticancer Activity, DNA Binding, and In-silico Docking Studies

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paritosh Shukla ◽  
Ashok Sharma ◽  
Leena Fageria ◽  
Rajdeep Chowdhury
Keyword(s):  
Anticancer Activity ◽  
Anticancer Agents ◽  
In Silico ◽  
Antimicrobial Agents ◽  
Docking Studies ◽  
Bioactive Molecules ◽  
Microwave Assisted Synthesis ◽  
Binding Affinities ◽  
In Silico Docking

Background: Cancer being a deadly disease, many reports of new chemical entities are available. Pyranopyrazole (PPZ) compounds have also been disclosed as bioactive molecules but mainly as antimicrobial agents. Based on one previous report and our interest in anticancer drug design, we decided to explore PPZs as anticancer agents. To the best of our knowledge, we found that a comprehensive study, involving synthesis, in-vitro biological activity determination, exploration of the mechanism of inhibition and finally in-silico docking studies, was missing in earlier reports. This is what the present study intends to accomplish. Methods: Ten spiro and eleven non-spiro PPZ molecules were synthesized by environment-friendly multicomponent reaction (MCR) strategy. After subjecting each of the newly synthesized molecules to Hep3b hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines assay, we selectively measured the Optical Density (OD) of the most active ones. Then, the compound exhibiting the best activity was docked against human CHK- 1 protein to get an insight into the binding affinities and a quick structure activity relationship (SAR) of the PPZs. Results: The two series of spiro and non-spiro PPZs were easily synthesized in high yields using microwave assisted synthesis and other methods. Among the synthesized compounds, most compounds showed moderate to good anticancer activity against the MTT assay. After performing the absorbance studies we found that the non-spiro molecules showed better apoptosis results and appeared to bind to DNA causing disruption in their structures. Finally, the docking results of compound 5h (having N,Ndimethylamino substituted moiety) clearly showed good binding affinities as predicted by our experimental findings. Conclusion: The paper describes a comprehensive synthesis, in-vitro and docking studies done on new PPZs. The newly synthesized series of spiro and non-spiro PPZs were found to possess antineoplasmic activity as evinced by the studies on hep3b cells. Also, the UV visible absorbance study gave clues to the possible binding of these molecules to the DNA. Docking studies corroborated well with the experimental results. Thus, these new molecules appear to be potential anticancer agents, but further studies are required to substantiate and elaborate on these findings.

scholarly journals Functional identification of ygiP as a positive regulator of the ttdA-ttdB-ygjE operon

Microbiology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 152 (7) ◽  
pp. 2129-2135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taku Oshima ◽  
Francis Biville
Keyword(s):  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Anaerobic Growth ◽  
Functional Identification ◽  
New Members ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Inner Membrane Protein ◽  
Tartrate Dehydratase

Functional characterization of unknown genes is currently a major task in biology. The search for gene function involves a combination of various in silico, in vitro and in vivo approaches. Available knowledge from the study of more than 21 LysR-type regulators in Escherichia coli has facilitated the classification of new members of the family. From sequence similarities and its location on the E. coli chromosome, it is suggested that ygiP encodes a lysR regulator controlling the expression of a neighbouring operon; this operon encodes the two subunits of tartrate dehydratase (TtdA, TtdB) and YgiE, an integral inner-membrane protein possibly involved in tartrate uptake. Expression of tartrate dehydratase, which converts tartrate to oxaloacetate, is required for anaerobic growth on glycerol as carbon source in the presence of tartrate. Here, it has been demonstrated that disruption of ygiP, ttdA or ygjE abolishes tartrate-dependent anaerobic growth on glycerol. It has also been shown that tartrate-dependent induction of the ttdA-ttdB-ygjE operon requires a functional YgiP.

scholarly journals Functional Characterization of the mazEF Toxin-Antitoxin System in the Pathogenic Bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1107
Author(s):  
Wonho Choi ◽  
Yoshihiro Yamaguchi ◽  
Ji-Young Park ◽  
Sang-Hyun Park ◽  
Hyeok-Won Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Agrobacterium Tumefaciens ◽  
Physiological Function ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
In Vitro Assays ◽  
Cell Growth Inhibition ◽  
The Right

Agrobacterium tumefaciens is a pathogen of various plants which transfers its own DNA (T-DNA) to the host plants. It is used for producing genetically modified plants with this ability. To control T-DNA transfer to the right place, toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems of A. tumefaciens were used to control the target site of transfer without any unintentional targeting. Here, we describe a toxin-antitoxin system, Atu0939 (mazE-at) and Atu0940 (mazF-at), in the chromosome of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The toxin in the TA system has 33.3% identity and 45.5% similarity with MazF in Escherichia coli. The expression of MazF-at caused cell growth inhibition, while cells with MazF-at co-expressed with MazE-at grew normally. In vivo and in vitro assays revealed that MazF-at inhibited protein synthesis by decreasing the cellular mRNA stability. Moreover, the catalytic residue of MazF-at was determined to be the 24th glutamic acid using site-directed mutagenesis. From the results, we concluded that MazF-at is a type II toxin-antitoxin system and a ribosome-independent endoribonuclease. Here, we characterized a TA system in A. tumefaciens whose understanding might help to find its physiological function and to develop further applications.

scholarly journals NFB-01. FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERIZATION OF ATRX LOSS IN NF1-ASSOCIATED GLIOMA AND MPNST

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. iii417-iii418
Author(s):  
Ming Yuan ◽  
Karlyne Reilly ◽  
Christine Pratilas ◽  
Christopher Heaphy ◽  
Fausto Rodriguez
Keyword(s):  
Cell Lines ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Tert Promoter ◽  
Aggressive Tumors ◽  
Sirna Knockdown ◽  
Nih 3T3 ◽  
Vitro Effect ◽  
Murine Glioma

Abstract To identify the biologic relevance of ATRX loss in NF1-associated gliomagenesis, we studied the effects of Atrx loss using four previously characterized Nf1+/-Trp53+/- murine glioma lines. Lines 130G#3 and 158D#8 (corresponding to grade IV and III gliomas, respectively) displayed preserved ATRX protein expression compared to NIH-3T3 cells. We studied the effects of Atrx knockdown in these two lines in the presence and absence of the TERT inhibitor, BIRBR1532. Using a telomere-specific FISH assay, we identified increased signal intensity after Atrx knockdown, only in the presence of the TERT inhibitor. These features are reminiscent of ALT, although there were no significant alterations in cell growth. Next, we studied the effect of ATRX loss in MPNST lines ST88-14, NF90-8, STS-26T. These cell lines all expressed ATRX and DAXX. However, STS-26T contained a TERT promoter mutation and ST88-14 had a known SNP in the TERT promoter, while NF90-8 had no alterations. ATRX siRNA knockdown showed no significant effects in cell proliferation or apoptosis. However, ATRX knockdown resulted in rare ultra-bright foci, indicative of ALT. Next, we studied the in vitro effect of the ATR inhibitor VE-821 in MPNST cell lines. Only NF90-8 (lacking TERT alterations) demonstrated a decrease in growth after ATRX knockdown and VE-821 treatment. However, ATRX knockdown alone did not affect sensitivity to carboplatin. Our findings further support a role for ATRX loss with subsequent ALT activation in a biologic subset of NF1-associated malignancies, thereby opening an opportunity for therapeutic targeting of these aggressive tumors using specific classes of drugs.

scholarly journals Therapeutic Intervention of COVID-19 by Natural Products: A Population-Specific Survey Directed Approach

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 1191
Author(s):  
Christian R. Gomez ◽  
Ingrid Espinoza ◽  
Fazlay S. Faruke ◽  
Mahbub Hasan ◽  
Khondaker Miraz Rahman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Critical Factor ◽  
Docking Studies ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Protein Targets ◽  
In Silico Docking ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Glucose 6 Phosphate Dehydrogenase

To date very few promising leads from natural products (NP) secondary metabolites with antiviral and immunomodulatory properties have been identified for promising/potential intervention for COVID-19. Using in-silico docking studies and genome based various molecular targets, and their in vitro anti-SARS CoV-2 activities against whole cell and/or selected protein targets, we select a few compounds of interest, which can be used as potential leads to counteract effects of uncontrolled innate immune responses, in particular those related to the cytokine storm. A critical factor for prevention and treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection relates to factors independent of viral infection or host response. They include population-related variables such as concurrent comorbidities and genetic factors critically relevant to COVID-19 health disparities. We discuss population risk factors related to SARS-CoV-2. In addition, we focus on virulence related to glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency (G6PDd), the most common human enzymopathy. Review of data on the response of individuals and communities with high prevalence of G6PDd to NP, prompts us to propose the rationale for a population-specific management approach to rationalize design of therapeutic interventions of SARS-CoV-2 infection, based on use of NP. This strategy may lead to personalized approaches and improve disease-related outcomes.

Functional Characterization of GABAA Receptor Ligands In Vitro

2004 ◽  
pp. 85-94
Author(s):  
Bjarke Ebert ◽  
Sally Anne Thompson ◽  
Signe Í. Stórustovu ◽  
Keith A. Wafford
Keyword(s):  
Gabaa Receptor ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Receptor Ligands

scholarly journals Biochemical and Functional Characterization of Anthocyanidin Reductase (ANR) from Mangifera indica L.

Molecules ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 2876 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Tan ◽  
Mei Wang ◽  
Youfa Kang ◽  
Farrukh Azeem ◽  
Zhaoxi Zhou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Assay ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Mangifera Indica ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Citrate Buffer ◽  
Anthocyanidin Reductase ◽  
High Amino Acid ◽  
Optimum Ph

Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is abundant in proanthocyanidins (PAs) that are important for human health and plant response to abiotic stresses. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in PA biosynthesis still need to be elucidated. Anthocyanidin reductase (ANR) catalyzes a key step in PA biosynthesis. In this study, three ANR cDNAs (MiANR1-1,1-2,1-3) were isolated from mango, and expressed in Escherichia coli. In vitro enzyme assay showed MiANR proteins convert cyanidin to their corresponding flavan-3-ols, such as (−)-catechin and (−)-epicatechin. Despite high amino acid similarity, the recombinant ANR proteins exhibited differences in enzyme kinetics and cosubstrate preference. MiANR1-2 and MiANR1-3 have the same optimum pH of 4.0 in citrate buffer, while the optimum pH for MiANR1-1 is pH 3.0 in phosphate buffer. MiANR1-1 does not use either NADPH or NADH as co-substrate while MiANR1-2/1-3 use only NADPH as co-substrate. MiANR1-2 has the highest Km and Vmax for cyanidin, followed by MiANR1-3 and MiANR1-1. The overexpression of MiANRs in ban mutant reconstructed the biosynthetic pathway of PAs in the seed coat. These data demonstrate MiANRs can form the ANR pathway, leading to the formation of two types of isomeric flavan-3-ols and PAs in mango.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document